A September Morning Birding the Blue Ridge

Ten people showed up on a beautiful and crisp (54 degrees when we started) fall morning for the regular (every 4th Saturday) bird walk at the Blue Ridge Center for Environmental Stewardship on September 23.

Ruby-crowned Kinglet

While fog lay heavy in several places it cleared before long and we found a fair amount of migratory activity. As the day warmed up several varieties of butterflies were also seen.  Our highlights included good looks at a Merlin, a Yellow-billed Cuckoo, a Least Flycatcher, a Philadelphia Vireo, four Ruby-crowned Kinglets, two female Orchard Orioles, and several mixed flocks.

While it was tough to ID all the birds in the mixed flocks because of their activity, they included Magnolia Warblers (our most common warbler), most of the Ruby-crowned Kinglets, the Philadelphia Vireo, and the two Black-and-white Warblers. Indigo Buntings, House Wrens, Field Sparrows, and Common Yellowthroats and most of the butterflies turned up in the meadows, managed for wildlife, which were beautiful with goldenrod.  Numerous Cedar Waxwing flocks flew back and forth over our heads with one large flock of Brown-head Cowbirds flying overhead as we were checking out the Monarch waystation at the end of the walk.

The butterflies included at least 10 Monarchs, a Tiger Swallowtail, Cabbage Whites, Eastern-tailed Blues, Pearl Crescents, 2 Painted Ladies, a Common Buckeye, and a Northern Pearly Eye.

For a list of the birds see below. 

Good birding,

Joe Coleman, Jane Yocom, Bryan Henson, & Allison Gallo

Blue Ridge Center for Environmental Stewardship, Loudoun, Virginia, US Sep 23, 2017 8:00 AM – 11:00 AM

Protocol: Traveling

2.1 mile(s)

47 species (+1 other taxa)

Canada Goose  35

Black Vulture  12

Turkey Vulture  19

Osprey  1

Red-shouldered Hawk  2

Red-tailed Hawk  1

Yellow-billed Cuckoo  1     perched & well-seen by the group

Red-bellied Woodpecker  6

Downy Woodpecker  5

Hairy Woodpecker  4

Northern Flicker  2

Pileated Woodpecker  5

Merlin  1

Eastern Wood-Pewee  2

Least Flycatcher  1

Empidonax sp.  3

Eastern Phoebe  4

Great Crested Flycatcher  1

Philadelphia Vireo  1

Red-eyed Vireo  2

Blue Jay  13

American Crow  12

Fish Crow  1

Northern Rough-winged Swallow  17

Carolina Chickadee  10

Tufted Titmouse  6

White-breasted Nuthatch  4

House Wren  3

Carolina Wren  8

Ruby-crowned Kinglet  4

Eastern Bluebird  4

Gray-cheeked Thrush  1

American Robin  2

Gray Catbird  6

Brown Thrasher  2

Black-and-white Warbler  2

Common Yellowthroat  3

American Redstart  1

Magnolia Warbler  5

Black-throated Green Warbler  1

Chipping Sparrow  1

Field Sparrow  5

Northern Cardinal  9

Indigo Bunting  8

Orchard Oriole  2     Were seen in the distance high in a tree interacting with a Red-bellied WP allowing us to compare the size which was a little smaller than the Red-bellied. Both were obviously yellow on the body & throat  from a distance with somewhat darker wings. Posture and bill was oriole-like rather than like a tanager.

Brown-headed Cowbird  80

American Goldfinch  4

House Sparrow  2

View this checklist online at http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S39349740

This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org)